Every Tuesday we will feature a new transportation-related topic. It could be delving into a topic, sharing a link to a helpful resource or an interview with a featured person who uses alternative modes of transportation like bikes or scooters to get around.
Today's Transportation Tuesday coincides with the start of Bike Walk Week so as the Mobility Manager and a biker myself -- I wanted to give people an idea of what riding around Cortland on a bike is like. So here are a couple of videos of the experience, as filmed using a head-mounted Go-Pro camera during a bike ride around Cortland last week.
This particular clip was taken heading north on Pomeroy Street as it becomes Route 13 after the underpass.
(Note-While I'm riding a racing bike here, I also have a commuter bike I ride and the challenges are all similar though the routes taken may differ)
Food for thought... look at this picture and see how I try to make sure my tires are perpendicular to the tracks so they don't get caught.
And this particular clip was taken along Groton Avenue. Note the narrow shoulders, fast traffic and other obstacles bikers face. From about 1:53 on especially you'll get a sense of the speed of traffic and obstacles like sewer grates that can cause cyclists to bicycle closer to cars than the sidewalks.
More food for thought, check out the picture below with all the possible hazards pointed to.
We are hoping that watching these videos and looking at these pictures will lend insight into what challenges bikers face on the road and make everyone a little more courteous and aware of why it's important to share the road.